Sensex Today: Domestic Equity Benchmarks Show Modest Gains Amid Mixed Market Sentiment; IT Stocks Extend Rally

In early afternoon trading on Monday, domestic equity benchmarks continued to display modest gains, with the Nifty 50 index holding steady above the 24,350 mark. This came after the index briefly dipped to an intraday low of 24,212.10 during the morning session. IT stocks maintained their upward trajectory, marking the second consecutive session of gains for the sector.

As of 12:30 PM IST, the S&P BSE Sensex was up by 150.84 points, or 0.19%, trading at 79,856.75. The Nifty 50 index experienced a smaller increase, rising 23.65 points, or 0.10%, to reach 24,391.15. In the broader market, the S&P BSE Mid-Cap index saw a decline of 0.25%, while the S&P BSE Small-Cap index posted a gain of 0.38%.

Despite the slight gains in the major indices, market breadth remained negative, with 1,891 shares advancing and 2,006 shares declining on the BSE. A total of 145 shares remained unchanged, reflecting a cautious market sentiment.

Derivatives Market Insights: The NSE’s India VIX, a key indicator of market volatility, advanced by 3.21% to 15.83, signaling heightened investor caution in the near term. The Nifty 29 August 2024 futures were trading at 24,445.10, at a premium of 53.95 points compared to the spot index at 24,391.15.

In the options market, the 29 August 2024 expiry showed the highest open interest (OI) for calls at the 25,000 strike price, with 38.8 lakh contracts. On the put side, the 24,000 strike price saw the maximum OI with 48.3 lakh contracts, indicating strong support around this level.

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Sectoral Performance: The Nifty IT index continued its positive momentum, rising by 0.61% to 39,280.75. This marks a 2.16% gain over the past two trading sessions. Key contributors to the IT sector’s performance included Infosys, which climbed by 1.45%, and LTIMindtree, which increased by 0.81%. Other notable gainers in the IT space were HCL Technologies (up 0.4%), Tech Mahindra (up 0.07%), and Tata Consultancy Services (up 0.06%).

However, not all IT stocks shared in the gains. L&T Technology Services saw a decline of 0.81%, while Mphasis and Coforge also turned lower, slipping by 0.76% and 0.74% respectively.

Stocks in the Spotlight: Several individual stocks were in focus during the session. Dredging Corporation of India (DCIL) saw a significant decline of 3.25% after reporting a standalone net loss of ₹31.40 crore for Q1 FY25, a stark contrast to the net profit of ₹15.15 crore recorded in the same quarter of the previous fiscal year. The company’s revenue from operations also fell sharply, down 45.73% to ₹277.89 crore compared to the corresponding period last year.

Honasa Consumer, the parent company of Mamaearth, also faced selling pressure, with its shares falling by 4.20%. Despite reporting a consolidated net profit of ₹40.25 crore for Q1 FY25, a 62.86% increase from ₹24.72 crore in Q1 FY24, the market responded negatively. The company’s revenue from operations saw a year-on-year increase of 19.28% to ₹554.06 crore.

Mishra Dhatu Nigam (MIDHANI) experienced the steepest drop among the highlighted stocks, slipping by 5.05%. The company’s standalone net profit plummeted by 72.44% to ₹5.11 crore in Q1 FY25, down from ₹18.54 crore in the same quarter the previous year. MIDHANI’s revenue from operations also declined, coming in at ₹163.45 crore, a 12.93% decrease compared to the ₹187.72 crore reported in Q1 FY24.

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